The GG
by Mystic Winter
Summary: In 1992, David Schroeder was murdered. In 1992, Spencer Reid lost his best friend. Then, 18 years later, Spencer finds out that neither of those facts are true.
1. Prologue: Eighteen Years Ago

_September 14__th__, 1992_

The crisp, Fall air felt good on their hot faces as they bent over, gasping for air. The taller one looked over his shoulder, a relieved smile spreading over his face.

"I think we lost them, Spencer." He gasped. Spencer nodded and pushed his glasses into place.

"Good." He replied. The taller one wiped his sweaty forehead and stood upright.

"Lose anything?" He asked. Spencer shook his head.

"Nothing. Except my nerve." He replied. The taller nodded and clapped a hand to Spencer's shoulder.

"You'll get it back." He remarked before continuing to walk down the road. Spencer hurried after him.

"Hey, David, what's so important about getting your nerve back when the nerve we're talking about is only a figurative nerve? Statistically, it's more important to get an actual nerve back than a figurative one. So, why are you saying it's more important to get a figurative nerve back than a real nerve?" He asked. David almost smiled.

"The figurative nerve is also referred to as bravery." He replied. "And it's kind of nice if you get that back every time you lose it." Spencer nodded.

"You know, I'm really glad it's Friday." Spencer commented after a few moments of walking on the leaf-strewn road. "We don't have to lose the jocks until Monday."

Spencer Reid raced through the leaves, tripping over tree roots as he did so. This never would have had happened if David wasn't sick. He suddenly tripped over a hidden tree root and fell. The wind was knocked out of him and a rather bad stench reached his nostrils. Gasping for air, Spencer got to his feet and followed the smell to its source. He didn't get very far before he saw a person lying face down on the ground. The boy approached the person and rolled him over. His loud, piercing scream rang throughout the area. The person's face was cut off. Spencer felt sick to his stomach as he shrugged off his jacket and covered the person's head with it. It was ten minutes before the authorities arrived. It was ten minutes before Spencer was told that David was dead.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

_"The loss of a friend is like that of a limb; time may heal the anguish of the wound, but the loss cannot be repaired"_

_- Robert Southey_

He was so exhausted that nothing was keeping him awake, not even the steaming cup of coffee sitting innocently on his desk. Nightmares had plagued him all of last night, but the nightmares weren't about their most recent case. They had been about a blonde haired teen, who had ended up in the park with his face cut off. Spencer Reid closed his eyes and rested his head in his hands. Almost eighteen years to the day. That was how long David had been dead. It would be eighteen years in four days.

"Reid. Are you okay?" Reid looked up and gave Emily what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

"Yeah." He replied. "Yeah, I'm alright. I just didn't sleep well last night."

"Nightmares?" Emily asked. Reid nodded. "What about?"

"Something that happened to me when I was a kid. Involving my best friend." Reid replied. His tone was soft and sad. "I found his body in a park on my way home from school. He's been dead about eighteen years now."

"Oh, God. I'm so sorry." Emily whispered. Reid shrugged.

"It's fine." He replied. "I just miss him, that's all." He could almost hear David telling him to hold his head up and smile, because what had happened was over. Reid almost smiled. Almost. Sure, it was already done, but that didn't make him any happier.

"Don't look so glum, Reid. We have a case." Reid sighed and followed Emily and Morgan up to the briefing room. The sarcastic tone in Morgan's voice told him it was bad.

X-0-X-0

"Six teenagers, all blonde, were found in the park, a block from Riverside High School with their faces were cut off. By the time they were found, they had been dead for twelve hours." Hotch shook his head. The pictures were a sad sight to behold. Emily looked over at Reid, who was trying not to look like he'd seen this MO before.

"They're lying face down. It's almost like the unsub was trying to hide what he did." Reid piped up.

"There's a lot of defensive wounds on the victims. They fought back, and they fought back hard." Morgan commented. Reid shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He didn't like this at all. It hit too close to home, too close to David. He'd rather just forget David's death had ever happened and move on.

"These victims are also connected to a cold case back in '92. A boy by the name of David Schroeder was murdered in the exact same way, which has the local PD thinking it's the same killer." JJ told them.

"It is." Reid replied. Everyone turned their gaze to Reid. "The victims have exactly the same wounds as the kid in '92. They were all lying face down in the same park as the kid in '92, and just like the cold case, they'd all been dead twelve hours by the time they were found."

"They thought the twelve hour thing was just a coincidence until they found the unsub's third victim." Emily put in.

"So the unsub must know who will be going through that park and who won't by the time his victim has been dead for twelve hours. That means the unsub's organized enough to keep to the same schedule every time he kills." Morgan commented.

"The unsub will likely be in his fifties. They profiled him as a young male in his thirties back in '92." Reid added.

"Wheel's up in 25." Hotch sighed. This was going to be a bad one.

X-0-X-0

"What do we know about the victims so far?" Hotch asked once they'd all gotten settled on the plane.

"All the victims, including the one back in '92, were from wealthy families. Their fathers were all lawyers and their mothers were all out of the picture, and all of them had an older brother that's three years older than them." Reid replied.

"The victim from '92 has a name, you know." Emily said casually. Reid ignored her, but he supposed David might think he was trying to keep the '92 murder as impersonal as possible. It was personal, but he didn't want it to be. David would have been okay with that, but if David had been in his place he never would have referred to Reid as 'the victim from '92.'

"So this unsub is extremely organized. He manages to get victims without a mother, with a brother that's three years older than they are, and a father that's a lawyer." Rossi commented.

"And they all go to the same high school, too. A teacher, maybe." Emily suggested.

"Or someone who's had a bad experience with lawyers." JJ put in. "Maybe the unsub is getting revenge by taking away their sons."

"The unsub's killing over a six day period. He probably doesn't spend a fair amount of time with his victims while they're still alive." Morgan put in.

"Yeah, David Schroeder went out on Sunday night. His father was at a conference in Colorado, I think, and his brother was sick Monday, so he wouldn't have noticed anything suspicious. David was supposed to go to school on Monday, so his brother wouldn't have thought David was missing when he woke up and saw David wasn't home." Reid commented. Hotch nodded. He took David's case file and flipped through it.

"So, the unsub took David on Sunday night and he was dead twelve hours when…" Hotch trailed off and looked up from the case file. "When you found him." He said to Reid. Reid nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah, I found David Schroeder's body. Can we move on?" He sighed.

"David was the only victim in '92 and the unsub waited eighteen years before killing again. Why?" Morgan asked. They were all silent for a while, thinking on what Morgan had just said.

"It's the eighteenth anniversary of David's death. Maybe the unsub decided it was the perfect time to make a comeback, kind of like the Zodiac on the anniversaries of his victims' deaths." Reid suggested.

"It's possible. Let's hope we can catch this guy before he kills again. Rossi, Morgan, you two go check out the crime scene. Emily, Reid, you two head down to the coroner's office and look over the victims. JJ and I will head to the precinct and get set up." Hotch replied.

X-0-X-0

Emily looked over at Reid before turning back to the road. Her companion was unusually quiet.

"So, tell me about David?" She asked.

"He was a good kid." Reid replied. "He got A's in every class, was the captain of the football team, and lost most of his friends when he took me under his wing."

"Why's that?" Emily asked.

"Why's what?" Reid replied.

"Why'd he lose most of his friends?" Emily asked.

"Because no one cared about the geek, except for David and his girlfriend, Abigail Andrews. The jocks didn't like that. They didn't like anyone who didn't pick on the nerds and the kids who were small enough to get shoved into lockers." Reid told her. He shook his head and sighed in exasperation. "Not to mention, he could be absolutely infuriating. Always beating up the kids who picked on me. It's a wonder he was never suspended."

_*August 30th 1992*_

_Spencer Reid hurried over to David, who was in the process of getting his books out of his locker._

_"What the hell were you thinking? You can't just punch out kids because they tied your best friend to a football post!" He exclaimed._

_"Stripped him, tied him to a football post, and left him there. When did you get home, again?" David retorted. _

_"That has nothing to do with-" Spencer began, exasperation coloring his words._

_"It has everything to do with it!" David shouted. "And if I have to take out every sports team in this school before they realize David Schroeder isn't going to put up with their shit anymore, so be it." Spencer regarded his friend with a look of disbelief on his face._

_"What's the matter with you?" He sighed. David slammed his locker closed._

_"Nothing is wrong with me. I just hate people who can't leave my friends alone." The older boy retorted._

_"You're going to get suspended one of these days, David Schroeder. And when you do, don't say that I didn't warn you." Spencer sighed. Both boys were equally exasperated with one another. They both knew it was probably best not to talk to one another until they cooled off and had clear heads on their shoulders. _

_"Look, let's just leave this alone. We can come back to it later. I don't want to argue." David sighed._

_"Neither do I, but sometimes you make that impossible." Spencer sighed._

_"Statistically?" David asked, sarcasm coloring his words. He walked away before Spencer could say anything else._

Emily smiled.

"He never gave up on protecting you, did he?" She commented. Reid shook his head.

"Nope." He replied. "He sure didn't. But that made him the greatest kid in Riverside. The greatest friend. To me, anyways. Kids called him the "Geek Guard." And he hated that." Emily had to laugh.

"Geek Guard, huh?" She said.

"We shortened it to "GG" eventually. He'd been carrying that name around since our freshman year, so we figured we ought to deal with it." Reid replied as they pulled into the parking lot. As soon as they pulled into a parking space, they hopped out of the car and hurried inside the building.

X-0-X-0

"They were found right here, face down. No blood and no signs of a struggle, which means the unsub probably didn't kill Jeffrey Slade or any of the other victims here in the park." Morgan nodded.

"So where is he killing these kids? There never found where David Schroeder was murdered, and if this is the same unsub then we're probably not going to find where the more recent victims were murdered." Morgan commented.

"And why is he making a comeback now? What have these kids done to him that would make him want to erase their identity by removing their faces?" Rossi asked.

"Well, maybe it's like Reid says. The unsub could be doing what the Zodiac did on the anniversary of his victims deaths. Only, instead of writing to the police, he's killing. Or, like JJ suggested, it could be the fathers. But instead of killing the fathers and making the sons suffer, he's taking the sons. That way, he's torturing the fathers in the worse way he can think of. It lasts longer than any type of physical torture that he can inflict directly on the fathers. If he takes away the fathers, then the sons suffer." Morgan suggested.

"But why? The police have better technology than they did back in '92. There's a better chance of catching him this time. Why risk it?" Rossi put in.

"There's no physical evidence that we know of. He may not even be from the area. He might be coming across the state lines to dump the bodies." Morgan replied.

"But how would he know who comes to the park and who doesn't when his victims have been dead for exactly twelve hours?" Rossi countered. Morgan knelt down next to where Jeffrey Slade's body had been found.

"He could have lived here before. Or maybe he's come back for a short killing spree before going back across state lines to where he lives." The younger man suggested after a few seconds. "But, then again, why risk being caught with a body in your car?"

"It's too risky. He probably lives in this area, possibly knows the kids really well. He could be a teacher, a janitor, a coach, maybe even someone who works in the grocery store or the gas station. The kids would have to know him well enough to trust him." Rossi replied. Morgan stood and looked around for a moment or two.

"So, how's he kidnapping these kids? Is he offering them a ride home, luring them into a trap? How is he getting these kids alone?" Morgan asked. Rossi shook his head.

"The unsub is organized. His schedule is always the same, every time. And, according to Reid, the man's probably in his fifties by now." The older said.

"So he might be retired, or his work schedule enables him to stick to his killing schedule." Morgan added.

"Well, catching this guy should be fun." Rossi sighed, sarcasm dripping from his words.

X-0-X-0

Hotch and JJ followed Officer Abigail Andrews to the fair sized room set aside for the BAU.

"Everyone's freaking out, if you know what I mean." Abigail sighed. "When David Schroeder was murdered we all thought there was a serial killer out there, lying in wait for a poor unsuspecting soul. Now, this." She gestured to the case files on the table and the pictures pinned to the board. "Let's just say we didn't expect to see this exact same thing six times in one week." Hotch nodded his understanding.

"Did you know any of the victims?" He asked. Abigail ran her hand through her short, ginger-colored hair.

"None of the more recent ones. I was David Schroeder's girlfriend way back in the day, though." She replied. "He was a sweet boy. Captain of the football team, a straight A student. He was in nearly every club Riverside had to offer." JJ smiled.

"He sounds like a good kid." She commented.

"Oh, he was. God, I wish he were still alive. Well, I'll let you get to work. Just holler if you need anything." Abigail replied. She quickly left the room, leaving JJ and Hotch to set up.

"Do you think she still loves him?" JJ asked. Hotch frowned.

"Who?" He asked. "David?"

"Yeah." JJ replied. "Most high school relationships die out after a while, don't they?" Hotch allowed a small smile.

"I think she still cares about him very much." He replied.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

He refused to admit that this case was getting to him. He positively refused to admit that this case made him think more about David Schroeder than he had in the past eighteen years. Spencer Reid knew David would tell him to quit being an idiot and to just admit that he was bothered by the case. David would probably smack him upside the head, too, but David wasn't here.

"Reid, you with us man?" Reid looked up at Morgan.

"Huh?" He asked. Hotch smiled slightly in amusement.

"Reid, why don't you take a break, okay?" He suggested. Reid nodded and left the room. He was glad to get away from them for a bit, glad to grab some time alone.

"David, I really need your help right now." He sighed as he exited the precinct. "You were always really good at doing that."

"He was, wasn't he?" Reid nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned and scrutinized the young, ginger haired female officer in front of him.

"Let me guess. Abigail Andrews." He replied. Abby grinned.

"Yep. How do you like being back in Vegas?" She asked. Reid shrugged. The truth was, it was bringing back all sorts of memories. He could tell Abby that, she'd always been quite nice to him, but he decided not to tell her. Honestly, he wouldn't have told David either.

"It's fine." Reid replied. Abby raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing him. "Okay, so I'm not fine. I mean, it isn't fine. Being back isn't fine. I'm fine, but being back isn't." Abby had to laugh.

"So, in short, you aren't okay and being reminded so much of GG is screwing with your head. You're an open book, Spence." She said. Reid smiled slightly.

"You're right. Can I have a hug?" Anyone in the BAU may have thought it was strange of him to ask, but Abby had been friends with Spencer since the second grade and was used to such requests from him. They hugged each other tightly for a minute before breaking apart.

"How've you been?" She asked. Reid shrugged.

"I've been okay. How about you?" He replied.

"Great until this case came up." Abby replied. She sighed heavily and folded her arms over her chest. "If we find this bastard, I'll kill him."

"I won't stop you." Reid told her. "Truthfully, I'd like a piece of the unsub, too." Abby knew Spencer was a gentle person, but she also knew that when it came to his friends, Spencer was rough and unstoppable.

"Whoever it is, he better hope we aren't around when he's caught." Abby commented. Spencer smiled.

"Agreed." He replied.

X-0-X-0-X

It was incredibly late. They'd been working hard all day, trying to find clues, a slip-up on the unsub's part, but, so far, they'd found absolutely nothing. JJ, Emily, and Rossi had talked to the victims' families earlier, but the parents hadn't revealed much. What Reid found strange was that they were all straight "A" students, played football, looked a lot like David, and all went to Riverside. Next to that, every one of the victims' fathers were lawyers, and their mothers were out of the picture. It was all too familiar to Reid. He was having a hard time with this.

"Reid, go get some sleep." Hotch said when Reid gave a yawn that nearly split his face in two.

"No. I have to keep working on this." Reid replied as he ran a hand through his hair.

"David wouldn't want you exhausting yourself, Reid." Emily said in a gentle, but coaxing voice.

"David hardly got what he wanted when it came to me." Reid sighed. "Besides, he wouldn't want me to leave this alone. I'm staying." Emily and Hotch exchanged exasperated looks, but said nothing else. They were all silent for a while before Hotch spoke.

"Reid, how'd David break his arm?" He asked.

"David never broke a bone in his body." Reid replied. "Why?"

"Because autopsy reports say David broke his arm about two years before he died." Hotch said. Reid frowned.

"I met David two years before he died. He never broke his arm." He told Hotch.

"Is it possible that David isn't really David?" Emily asked.

"Could be." Reid muttered. His mind was racing. Could he be alive? Could he still be out there? If he was, why hadn't he come back?

_Maybe he can't._ Reid reasoned. _Maybe he's incapacitated or something._ But for eighteen years? Surely he would have found a way out by now? Deep down, Reid felt betrayed. David was a fighter! He always fought his way out! Why hadn't he done that this time? He was probably dead. No matter the cost, David would have come back by now.

"Reid. Earth to Reid." Reid jolted out of his reverie.

"Huh? What?" He asked.

"Would you be alright with going by Mr. Schroeder's and getting his permission to exhume his son's body?" Hotch asked. Reid went rigid. They wanted to disturb David's peace? They wanted to disturb his body? No way.

"You do it." Reid snapped. "I'm not having any part in that." Before anyone could say anything else, Reid was out of the room and leaving the precinct. Hotch sighed. He wondered if he should pull Reid from the case. You didn't have to be a profiler to see that Reid was having a rough time handling this.

Reid angrily climbed into the SUV and slammed the car door shut. Let them do whatever the hell they wanted; he would have no part in it. There was no way in hell he was going to help dig up his best friend. He lay his head back against the seat and closed his eyes. In the silence, he could almost hear David telling him to take it easy…

_*September 13th, 1992*_

_"Take it easy, man. I'm nearly done."_

_"Ow! David, please!" _

_"Almost done. Just one more." The young boy buried his face in his hands as the older boy extracted the last shard of glass from his side. _

_"Yikes." David muttered. "That's a big one." Spencer groaned. David pressed the wad of toilet paper to Spencer's side, careful not to press too hard. He wasn't happy, but he was a bit calmer than he had been when he'd first found Spencer sitting on the cold, leaf strewn ground, clutching his bleeding side, trying hard not to cry._

_"How'd this happen, again?" David asked. Spencer just shook his head. "Come on, Spence. You can tell me." Reid shook his head again. _

_"I promise I won't kill anyone." David promised._

_No response._

_"I'll remain calm and handle it accordingly."_

_No response._

_"I'll talk to the principal about it instead of handling it myself."_

_"The principal doesn't care." Spencer muttered. David sighed almost inaudibly in relief. Finally, he'd gotten an answer, but not the answer he was looking for. _

_"Then I'll talk to their parents. What happened and who was it?" The older boy replied._

_"They pushed me and I fell. No one knew there was glass under those leaves." Spencer muttered as he began to stand. David gently pushed him back down onto the toilet seat. _

_"You're staying here until the medics come. Now, who pushed you?" David told him, but not unkindly. _

_"It was an accident." Spencer pressed. "Just an accident."_

_"And I suppose they left you there by accident?" David muttered as he grabbed another wad of toilet paper and threw the bloody wad away. _

_"Yes, because they're scared of you." Spencer sighed._

_"They wouldn't be scared of me if they were actually nice to you." David replied. They could hear the sirens now. "Can you make it outside?" Spencer nodded and wiped his eyes._

_"Yes, but you'll have to help me." He replied. David smiled as he help his friend stand._

_"Don't I always?" He asked good-naturedly. Spencer grinned. It had been a silly request. He knew David would always be there to help him. They exited the bathroom and stepped out into the chilly, leaf strewn park. "They really should get a clean-up crew out here." David muttered as they sat down against the wall. _

_"Yeah, no kidding." Spencer sighed sullenly. _

Reid angrily wiped the tears from his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed sleep. He needed David. Reid stuck the keys in the ignition and started the car. He waited a few moments before driving back to the hotel. It really sucked, how much the case was affecting him. Why was he so out of whack? Was it because he couldn't stand being reminded of David? He wiped his eyes again and tried to focus on the road. He probably shouldn't be driving if he couldn't focus.

X-0-X-0-X

Reid didn't get any sleep that night. He went back to the precinct around 7:00 the next morning, exhausted. If anyone noticed something wrong, they didn't comment on it.

"Exhume him yet?" Reid asked Hotch. Hotch shook his head.

"We haven't asked yet. Emily's going, if you want to go with her." The older agent replied.

"I already said no." Reid retorted as he flipped through Jason Grant's file.

"I think you should be there." Hotch commented. Reid snapped the file shut and glared daggers at Hotch.

"Hear me out, Hotchner. David was my best friend. If you think for one second that I am going to take part in digging him up and disturbing his peace, then you haven't got much of a-" Reid stopped mid-sentence, knowing he would be in for it if he finished it. Hotch folded his arms over his chest and fixed Reid with a look that the younger agent assumed was supposed to let him know that he was treading on thin ice.

"Have much of a what?" Hotch demanded. Reid hesitated.

"Nothing. I just… lost my train of thought, that's all." The younger agent muttered.

"Reid." Hotch said in a dangerous tone. "If I have to yank you off this case and send you home, then I will. Regardless of how well you knew the first victim. Am I understood?" Reid nodded, feeling like a chastised child who'd been caught stealing from the cookie jar.

"Get to work on the geological profile, please." Hotch sighed, his tone a bit less harsh than before. Reid silently did as he was told. If David had been here…

"Shut up, Spencer. He isn't here." Reid muttered as he started to look over the geographical profile. "No sense in thinking what he would've done if he was here." Emily walked over to him and hugged him.

"Listen, I know this is hard. But if he's alive, this is the only way to figure out if the body you found eighteen years ago is his or not." She told him. Reid nodded and hugged her back. He felt tears well up in his eyes, but made no attempt to wipe them away.

"I miss him so much." He whispered. "Maybe Hotch should take me off the case." They broke apart and Reid angrily wiped his eyes on his sleeve.

"We need you on this case, Reid. Don't give him a reason to yank you off the case. Are you going to come with me?" Emily asked. Reid thought for a moment. Mr. Schroeder might feel more comfortable if he was there. David's father knew Reid would have David's best interests at heart, but he wouldn't know if Emily did.

"Yeah." He replied. "Yeah, I'll go."

"Great. Need help on that profile?" Emily asked.

"Nah, I'll be fine. Thanks, though." Reid said. Emily nodded and patted his shoulder.

"I'll come get you before I leave." She told him. Reid watched her join Rossi, Morgan, and Abby before turning back to the profile. He was almost finished with it.

"Okay." He muttered. "Let's get to work, Spencer."

It seemed like five minutes before Emily came and got him, but it was really an hour. They were silent for most of the ride to the house, and Reid was surprised that he remembered the way.

"There's the park." Reid commented as they passed it. "David and I used to go through there when we walked home from school. He picked a lot of fights there, too."

"Do you think one of the bullies could have killed him?" Emily inquired as they pulled into David's old neighborhood.

"It's possible. They were scared of him, because he kicked their asses so hard, but sometimes he made them so angry they wanted to kill him." Reid replied.

"He had a lot of enemies, didn't he?" Emily asked, though she wondered if it wasn't more of a statement.

"Yeah. All because of me." Reid sighed. His stomach lurched when David's house came into view. It was still light blue. "If he hadn't tried so damn hard to protect me, maybe he wouldn't be dead." They pulled into the driveway and got out of the car.

"You alright?" Emily asked.

"Yeah." Reid replied as he looked the house over. "Yeah, I'm fine." He followed Emily up the pathway to the front door. Reid noticed that the flower beds were just as clean as they had been the last time he had been there, eighteen years ago. He wondered if David's geraniums still came up in the spring. Emily knocked on the door and Reid noticed that the paint was still blue and was peeling off, revealing the white paint underneath.

"He might be sleeping." Reid muttered. "It's Saturday."

"Too late now." Emily commented. She went to knock again, but before she could the door opened. The man had a cane and his hair was gradually thinning, but Reid could still see the middle-aged, eccentric, protective lawyer who played football just as well as his son.

"Mr. Schroeder?" Emily asked.

"Yes." The man replied. Emily and Reid took out their credentials.

"I'm agent Prentiss with the FBI, and this is agent Reid. I think you two know each other." Emily said. The man smiled and nodded.

"Only know one Reid. 'Cept my client, but he's seventy." He replied. Reid smiled. For a moment the lonely, twelve year old boy shone through. "Well, come in. What's this about?"

"It's about David." Reid replied as he and Emily entered the house. He closed the door behind him. Mr. Schroeder's face fell. "We think he might still be alive."

"How's that?" Mr. Schroeder asked.

"We were looking over his autopsy report." Reid explained. "And I noticed it said David broke his arm two years before he died. That would have been eighth grade, but he never broke his arm then."

"He never broke any bone in his body, 'cept his ankle, when he was seven." Mr. Schroeder replied. "You want to exhume him, don't you?" Reid took a deep breath.

"It's the only chance to find out if he's dead or not." Reid told Mr. Schroeder. The older man nodded.

"Okay." He sighed.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Reid stood off to the side as he quietly watched them dig David up. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. Eighteen years ago there had been no doubt in his mind that the body he found was David's. Besides, David's wallet and school ID were in his pants pocket. That had been enough evidence for him. But there was evidence that David's school ID and wallet hadn't been in his pants pocket. The broken arm, no sign that either of his ankles had ever been broken, it all pointed to someone that was not David Schroeder. But the question of why David hadn't come back yet was still floating in his mind. David was a fighter. He never stopped fighting.

_You shouldn't stop fighting for him, either._ A small voice at the back of his head nagged. Reid took a deep breath and let it out slowly through his nose. He knew he had to fight for David. And, damn it, he would if it was the last thing he'd do. As the coffin was being lowered onto the ground, Reid walked over to his colleagues. Abby was chewing on her nails, a habit she'd picked up long before Reid had met her.

"What if it isn't him?" She whispered when Reid reached her.

"We're going to find him and the bastard that took him." Reid replied. Abby nodded.

"I hope so." She muttered. The coffin was opened and Reid squeezed his eyes shut. He didn't want to see the body. Not again. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he decided to open his eyes, but not look directly at the body.

"You okay?" Abby asked.

"I just… I don't… I don't want to look at him. Not like this." Reid replied shakily. Local PD put the body into a body bag and took it to the car. Reid took a deep breath. Now they just had to wait. Wait for the answer he wasn't sure he could wait for.

X-0-X-0

Reid was looking over the case files when Emily came in.

"Test results are back." She told him. Reid swallowed hard.

"And?" He asked. "Is it David?" Emily broke out into a grin.

"No." She replied. Reid's mouth fell part way open in shock. "Reid, David's still alive." Reid couldn't speak. His gaze dropped down to the case file that had previously been David's.

"Who is it?" He whispered.

"Harry MacLean. He went missing in July of 1984. His father is a lawyer, his mother's out of the picture, and he has a brother, who's older than him by three years. Looks a lot like David. Same height, too." Emily told him. Reid frowned. Harry MacLean. He'd heard that name before.

"Harry MacLean was kidnapped in July of 1984; two months after David was kidnapped by the same unsub. Harry and Davy were both seven." Reid said. Emily frowned.

"Mr. Schroeder said David broke his ankle when he was seven." She commented.

"This isn't about killing. It's about hiding David. Whoever killed Harry wanted to make sure no one looked for David." Reid realized.

"But why would the unsub start killing again? David's already been confirmed dead, until now. Why mess that up?" Emily asked. Reid shook his head. He didn't know the answer to that.

"You're right. Everyone that knew David thought they knew he was dead, so why mess that up?" He replied.

"It was the autopsy report that gave it away. Anyone who didn't know David wouldn't have noticed anything fishy about the report." Emily suggested.

"But Hotch didn't know David. If he hadn't wondered how it happened…" Reid trailed off. "Where is he?" he whispered after a few moments of silence.

"I'm sure he would have come if he could. From what I've heard from you and agent Andrews, David was serious about those he cared about." Emily assured him. Reid didn't respond. David was still out there somewhere. He just didn't know where. Reid balled his hands into fists.

"When I find the son of a bitch that took him, he'll wish he had never been born. He'll learn real quick that no one takes my friends away from me." He growled.

X-0-X-0

"What do we know so far?"

"The unsub is a Caucasian male in his fifties, and he is incredibly organized." Hotch nodded.

"There appears to be no sexual motivation in these killings. Removing their faces could be a sign of remorse." He said.

"What's so special about David that the unsub feels like hiding him? Why not deface David, too?" Reid asked. "But I'm glad the bastard kept him alive." He amended quickly.

"It could be the same unsub that kidnapped David and Harry MacLean back in '84. Whoever it was still had Harry, or a way of getting him." Morgan suggested.

"Why go back for David, though? David told me the unsub that kidnapped him let him go." Reid inquired. "He said that the unsub told him he didn't need him anymore."

"Did he give a description of the unsub?" Rossi asked hopefully. Reid shook his head.

"No. He was blindfolded the entire time." He replied sadly. JJ sighed.

"There has to be somewhere we can start. These kids had no enemies-" Morgan began. 

"But David and the victims' fathers did." Reid interrupted.

"Yeah, we're going over the cases the victims' fathers handled, but so far we haven't got anything." Emily replied.

"Then I'm going to talk to James Bradford." Reid told them. "If David didn't tell me something, he usually told it to James."

"Call me if you get anything. Morgan, why don't you go with him?" Hotch replied. Reid nodded.

"So, how does it feel?" Morgan asked as they exited the precinct. Reid frowned.

"How does what feel?" He said.

"Knowing that he really isn't dead." Morgan replied. Reid smiled as he got into the passenger's seat of the SUV.

"It feels great." He said.

X-0-X-0

Spencer raised an eyebrow as they pulled up into the Bradford driveway. The house was quite large, white, and the yard looked like it had recently been cut.

"Nice place." The younger agent commented.

"Think he'll remember you?" Morgan asked as they walked up to the freshly painted door. Reid raised an eyebrow.

"Why wouldn't he?" He inquired Morgan shrugged as Reid knocked on the door.

"Only wondering." The older agent replied. The door opened to reveal a man in his early thirties with chestnut hair and bright blue eyes.

"How can I help you?" The man asked.

"James Bradford?" Reid asked. James nodded. "I'm agent Spencer Reid, this is agent Derek Morgan. Do you mind if we ask you a- what?" James shook his head, a wild grin on his face.

"FBI, huh? Who would have thought... though, I suppose David did. He's why you're here, right, Spencey?" Reid's eyes widened in horror. James grinned. "Come on in."

"Spencey?" Morgan whispered as they entered the house.

"Shut up, Morgan." Reid retorted. James laughed. For a second, Reid saw the energetic fourteen year old standing in front of him.

"So, what new secrets about David did you dig up?" James inquired as they sat down in the living room.

"He's not dead, Jamie." Reid told his friend. James's mouth fell part-way open. "We exhumed his body- no, let me finish. We exhumed his body because a few things in his autopsy report didn't add up. It wasn't David."

"Who was it?" James asked. His voice was incredibly low.

"Harry MacLean." Reid replied. "Did David ever mention him to you?" James shook his head.

"No. Who is he?" He asked.

"Did David tell you that he was kidnapped when he was seven?" Reid inquired.

"No." James responded.

"David, along with Harry MacLean, was kidnapped when he was seven. Harry was the same age and looked a lot like him. The unsub, or unknown subject, let David go, but not Harry." Reid told his friend.

"We think that these murders are about hiding David." Morgan put in. "Did David ever mention anything to you before he disappeared, anything that you know he wouldn't have told Reid?" James thought for a moment before something dawned on him.

"There was something..."

_*September 14th, 1992*_

_Sobbing. It was coming from the bathroom. James Bradford silently slipped into the men's bathroom and made sure the door made no sound as the door closed behind him._

_"Hello?" He called. The sobbing stopped abruptly and everything fell silent, except for a few almost inaudible sniffles. "David?" _

_"What?" _

_"Why are you crying?" A loud sniff accompanied James's question. "Well?"_

_"What makes you think I'm going to tell you?" David snapped. James shrugged, momentarily forgetting David couldn't see him. "I found her." James frowned._

_"Found who?" James asked. David sniffed loudly again._

_"Mom." He whispered tearfully. _

_"That's great!" James exclaimed happily. "How is she?"_

_"They were right." David sobbed. "She's nothing but a prostitute!"_

_"You talked to her?" James asked. David didn't answer for a while. He was crying too hard to say anything at that moment. _

_"Yeah." David replied as soon as he had gotten control of himself. "But she... she doesn't care about me, her family. Were just a bunch of mistakes." _

_"How do you know that?" James asked._

_"Because she told me." David whispered. He drew in a shuddering breath and James got scared that his best friend was going to cry again. James leaned against the stall door. _

_"Well, maybe you should try talking to her again." He suggested. "She's your mom, and you love her. She loves you, too, you know. Nothing she says is going to change that, man." James heard the lock click and he stood upright. David came out of the stall and James slung an arm around his friend's shoulders. David's face was beat red and tear-streaked and his eyes were red and puffy._

_"Don't tell Spence about this, okay. He has more than enough to handle." The blonde said._

_"I won't say a thing. I promise."_

_*End of Flashback*_

"Why wouldn't he have told me?" Reid asked.

"He said you already had more than enough to handle. You know David, Spencer. He didn't like laying his problems on others, especially those he cares about." James replied.

"Did he say where he met his mother?" Reid asked. James shook his head. "Do you know her name?"

"Jill. Jill Schroeder. No middle name." James replied.

X-0-X-0

Reid quickly got out of the car and hurried into the club.

"Hey, wait up." JJ called.

"She might know where David is." Reid said over his shoulder.

"Rushing into this won't help. Slow down." JJ reminded him. Reid stopped and turned to look at JJ.

"Eighteen years. I thought he was dead for eighteen damn years, JJ. I have to hurry; I have got to find him." He retorted.

"I know." JJ sighed as they entered the strip club. "But we have got to be patient." Reid sighed and nodded.

"I know. I'm sorry. What if we're already too late? What if the unsub already-" He began.

"Killed him?" JJ interrupted. "We already figured out that Harry MacLean's murder was to hide David and that these newer murders are probably happening so the unsub can keep hiding him."

"Right." Reid whispered. "Excuse me, could you tell us where we could find Jill Schroeder?" The blonde-grey haired woman raised an eyebrow.

"Who's asking?" She demanded. Reid flashed his badge.

"I'm SSA Spencer Reid and this is SSA Jennifer Jareau." He replied. "We just need to ask her a few questions about her youngest son." The woman nodded.

'I'm Jill. What about David? Did you find his killer?" Jill asked.

"He's not dead, Mrs. Schroeder. Some things in his autopsy report didn't add up. The body was Harry MacLean's." Reid replied.

"My baby's not dead?" Jill breathed.

"No, ma'am." JJ responded. "Did you see him after he found you around September 17th, 1992?" Jill smiled sadly and nodded.

"September 16th. He came by, said he wanted to talk..."

_*September 16th, 1992*_

_"Look, I need to see my mother, Jill Schroeder. I'm not here for sex." Jill Schroeder pushed her way towards her son. "Hey! That's too close for comfort. Any closer and I'll-"_

_"Alright, Betty. Leave him alone." Jill sighed when she reached the fourteen year old and his "assaulter." Betty grudgingly backed off. David watched her leave, his gaze wary._

_"Thanks." David whispered. "Can we talk?" Jill put an arm around David's shoulders and guided him towards the back._

_"What is it?" She asked. David shrugged._

_"My girlfriend's being a little... possessive lately." He replied._

_"And if she saw you come in here?" Jill inquired. David smirked._

_"I'm hoping she'll back off." He responded. "She probably won't." Jill sat down in a chair._

_"So tell her to back off." She suggested._

_"I tried that." David sighed. "And she got angry. But she came right back to me an hour afterwards. Dad's at a conference and Charlie's sick, so I'm not going to bother them." _

_"What about Spencer and Jamie?" Jill asked._

_"Spencer is a twelve year old boy, and between the bullies and his home-problems, girls are the least of his worries. And Jamie's a little busy with swim team. Besides, he doesn't know much about girls." David replied. "What, I can't talk to you?" _

_"Of course you can." Jill replied. She stood up and hugged David. David felt a little awkward. Being hugged by his scantily clad prostitute mother was not something he'd ever thought would happen to him. She released him a few moments later and ruffled his hair._

_"So, what do I do?" David asked. _

_"Tell her it's over." Jill replied. David's eyes went wide._

_"I don't have a death wish, though." He protested. _

_"Telling her to back off is essentially the same as telling her it's over, is it not?" Jill inquired. David shrugged._

_"Yeah. I suppose it is." He replied. "I've got to go. I love you." _

_"I love you too, Davy. Mistake or not." Jill told David. _

_*End of Flashback*_

"David and his girlfriend were having problems?" Reid asked. Jill nodded.

"From what he told me." She replied. "You were his best friend, right? How were they getting along?" Reid thought for a minute. Now that he thought on it, Abigail had been rather possessive of David the week before he disappeared.

"Their relationship was definitely going down." He said.

"Do you think Abby could have done something?" JJ asked as they drove back to the precinct.

"I don't know." Reid replied. "She never seemed like the violent type. I've known her longer than David." JJ nodded.

"I agree." She said. "She doesn't seem violent. But she loves him very much."

"I'll talk to her. And if I can't get anything out of her, I'm sure Hotch, Rossi, or Morgan can." Reid told JJ.

When they got back to the precinct, Hotch was talking to a blonde woman whom Reid had never seen before. Had she been on Abby's team when they had arrived?

"Reid, JJ." Hotch called. Reid and JJ hurried over to Hotch. "This is Detective Lilly Rush, she's with the Philadelphia PD. Detective Rush, this is Dr. Spencer Reid and Agent Jennifer Jareau."

"Philadelphia?" Reid asked. Lilly Rush nodded.

"Harry MacLean disappeared from Philly back in '84." She replied. "My team and I were looking into it when we found out he was murdered here."


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

They had just finished briefing Lilly when Abby arrived.

"You and I need to talk about you and David." Reid demanded. "Now." Abby frowned, but followed him out of the room anyway.

"You sound like a jealous boyfriend." She commented. Reid didn't crack a smile. Not even a small one.

"He wanted out." He said. Abby raised an eyebrow.

"Who wanted out of what?" She inquired. Reid folded his arms over his chest.

"David. He wanted out of the relationship. Or, at least, that's what his mother told us." He replied.

"And what does she know about David's relationship with me?" Abby retorted.

"David told her, the night he supposedly disappeared. And next to the fact that I clearly remember how possessive you were of David, it was obvious he was worried." Reid responded. People were starting to stare now.

"You remember that far back, now, huh?" Abby snapped. Reid's eyes narrowed.

"I will find out what you have to do with David's disappearance, Abigail." He said slowly. "Even if it's the last thing I do." Reid didn't wait around for her response. He pushed past her and rejoined the BAU. Abby swallowed hard as she watched him leave. Why was he assuming that she had something to do with all this? She ran a hand through her hair before following Reid. Emily opened her mouth to ask Reid what that had been about, but one look from him kept her quiet.

"As I was going to say," Abby said as she re-entered the room "we found another body."

X-0-X-0

Reid knelt next to the body. Same MO. The boy had been dead twelve hours, he was blond, and the same height David had been at fifteen. His father was also a lawyer, his mother was also out of the picture, and he also had an older brother.

"Hopefully the killer left some evidence behind this time." Lilly commented from behind him. Reid nodded.

"Same MO with Harry, right?" He inquired.

"Father's a lawyer, his mother is out of the picture, and he has an older brother." Lilly replied.

"Sounds about right." Reid replied as he stood. "The question is, why does he keep killing? If he wanted to keep David hidden, why not stop killing?"

"Maybe David tried to escape and this is his reward." Lilly commented.

"I never thought of that." Reid muttered. "Good point."

"It lasts a lot longer than a painful death, knowing that your captor is killing because you tried to escape." Lilly said. Reid nodded.

"You know, I think that might be it. And the autopsy report... I doubt he meant for that to get noticed." He responded. "It shouldn't have gotten noticed. Next to the fact that no one that knew David really well would have noticed that the autopsy report didn't add up to any of David's recent injuries, it was such a small detail."

"Looks like that was where our killer went wrong." Lilly commented.

X-0-X-0

Lilly and Reid told the team their theory on the way back to the precinct. It was obvious that the idea hadn't occurred to the BAU, or Abby, yet.

"We should look for any recent disturbances before the recent killings started." Emily suggested.

"What kind of disturbances?" Morgan asked as he took his phone out of his pocket.

"Domestic, arguments, anyone shouting for the world to hear in the middle of the night." Reid suggested. Morgan nodded and called Garcia.

"Hey, Garcia, I need you to look for disturbances within a seventy mile radius of the crime scenes. Domestic, loud arguments, anything of that sort. Okay, thanks."

"How long will it take her, do you think?" Abby inquired.

"To find something?" Reid asked. "Lightning fast." Abby nodded, and Reid noticed she looked a little pale. Would Garcia find something that had to do with Abby?

They arrived at the precinct ten minutes later and began to pour over the new evidence. The MO was the same, except, Reid noted, for one small detail, which he pointed out to the others.

"Does that look like a symbol to you?" He asked Hotch. Hotch took a closer look at the crime scene photo, which was of the victim's face. There were two small letters carved into the victim's cheek.

"It sure does." Hotch whispered. "JJ, can you make that out?" JJ took the picture from Hotch and squinted at the letters for a moment before shaking her head.

"No." She replied. "Reid?" Reid took the picture from JJ and looked at the letters very closely.

"It looks like... a 'd' and an 's'." He said after a while.

"DS." JJ muttered. "David Schroeder?" Reid looked up sharply.

"It could be." He replied, the shock evident in his voice.

"The question is, did the unsub do that, or is David trying to send a message?" Hotch asked.

X-0-X-0

"Okay, so I looked at disturbances within a seventy mile radius of the crime scene, but nothing major came up, which I found weird. So, I looked for any sealed records, and I found one."

"And?" Morgan could almost see Garcia roll her eyes.

"And I looked into it, of course. Is officer Abby Andrews on the case?" Garcia asked. Morgan frowned al leaned back in the chair.

"Yeah." He replied. "She's one of the leading officers. Why?"

"Because three days before the first recent murder, the police were called to her house when the neighbors heard her screaming and shouting something about someone trying to kill her. But when the police arrived, there were no signs of a struggle and no investigation took place, however, officer Andrews immediately had the report sealed." Garcia told him.

"Was that the first time the police had been called to her home?" Morgan inquired.

"Nope. I looked back about ten years, and in 2000 police were called to her home when neighbors heard her having a loud argument with an unknown male subject. Officer Andrews also had that report sealed, but not before the police began an investigation after she told the leading detective that the male subject was a violent boyfriend that she and her young child had left a year previously. Andrews asked the police to stop the investigation after she filed a restraining order against her boyfriend. Now, I went looking for this boyfriend, and he's been dead for almost twelve years now. It turns out this supposed boyfriend is an old classmate from high school who over dosed on crack three years before the incident. His name was Timothy Lachlan." Garcia responded. Morgan shook his head.

"Alright, thanks Garcia." He said before hanging up. "Hey, Rossi. We got something."

X-0-X-0

"Abby? Why would she keep any of that quiet? And why would she seal the records?" Reid asked incredulously.

"And why would she file a restraining order against a classmate who'd been dead three years?" Emily put in.

"Maybe it was David." Lilly suggested.

"Who was the classmate?" Reid asked, even though he had a pretty good idea of _who_ the classmate was.

"Timothy Lachlan." Morgan replied. "Does that name mean anything to you?" Reid shook his head.

"No. Abby hated his guts, which I guess makes sense." Reid picked up one of the files on the table. "Let's look a little deeper into these victims' lives and see if they've got any connection to Abby." He suggested.

"What are you thinking?" Lilly asked.

"I'm thinking that Abby has something to do with this." Reid replied. "She keeps popping up everywhere, and there has to be a reason for it."

"And if you're wrong?' Emily asked.

"If I'm wrong, David better try to send a clearer message." Reid sighed.

X-0-X-0

"So what? I didn't want to file a restraining order against the real man."

"Lachlan's been dead since '97, Abby." Abby looked taken aback.

"Oh." She said haltingly. "That's... that's terrible. I had no idea."

"And three days or so before the recent killings started, you falsely claimed that someone tried to kill you." Reid put in.

"Nightmare." Abby replied dryly as she sat down at her desk. "I woke up screaming. That's not my fault."

"You failed to tell that to the police, Abigail." Reid retorted. If looks could kill, Reid would definitely have been dead.

"I wasn't about to make myself look stupider." She growled.

"So you lied to the police." Reid said. "Smooth." Abby slammed her hand on her desk.

"How long have you known me, Spencer?" She snapped. "Have I ever seemed the violent type to you?" Reid raised an eyebrow.

"I never said you hurt anyone." He gave her a pointed look. "Or are you not telling me something?" Abby stood abruptly.

"I am not you." She hissed. "I don't need to lay my troubles on everyone just so I don't feel so burdened." And with that, she stormed out of the precinct. Reid watched her leave, knowing that her reaction meant something. He just had to figure out what.

"Agent Reid?" Reid turned to look at the owner of the voice. It was a young man, probably Reid's age, with short brown hair and dark eyes. He was holding an envelope.

"Yeah?" Reid asked. The man handed him the envelope.

"This came for you." The officer replied before walking off. Reid looked at the envelope. It was, indeed, addressed to him. There was no return address. Reid frowned and opened the envelope. It was a letter. He got no further than _'Dear Spencer_' before his mind began to race and shock ran through him like a knife. The letter was written in David Schroeder's familiar slanted scrawl.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"_Dear Spencer,_

_I obviously can't say much. I'd get in big trouble if She found out I wrote a letter. She stupidly allowed me to have a pencil and paper after my last escape attempt. Hopefully I can get Stella to slip this into the mailbox before She finds it. Stell's a good kid. I had her look you up a week ago. Congrads on getting into the FBI. _

_I think I know why she started killing again. It's probably my fault._

_GG_" Reid read.

"GG?" Rossi asked.

"That was the jock's nickname for him. It's short for geek guard." Reid replied.

"Our unsub is female." Emily muttered. "And it sounds like she has a kid."

"The unsubs aren't usually female in cases like this." Reid commented.

"Why not?" Lilly asked.

"Female serial killers tend to be less violent and less messy." Reid replied. Lilly nodded.

"I'll call Garcia and have her look for kids from age five to twelve in the Las Vegas area." Morgan said as he took his phone out.

"Alright. We just have to find David. And when we find David, we'll find Harry's killer and the person who killed the recent victims." Lilly said.

"I wonder if he knows so much is depending on him." Reid whispered.

"Okay, thanks baby girl." Morgan hung up and slipped his phone back in his pocket. "Garcia says she'll have that list by tomorrow. Okay, we know David tried to escape and he even says he thinks he knows why the unsub started killing again. Maybe his escape attempt triggered her need to kill."

"Or maybe it's his punishment. It's like Lilly pointed out, knowing your captor is killing just because you tried to escape, it lasts a lot longer than physical pain." Reid put in. "Maybe he tried to escape the night Abby claimed that someone tried to kill her. It fits the timeline of the recent murders."

"If you're saying Abby-" Hotch began. Reid slammed his hand on the table.

"Damn right I'm saying she's got something to do with all this!" He exclaimed. "Look, I've said it before. She keeps popping up everywhere in all this. Her relationship with David was falling apart and she needed a way to hold on to him-"

"Reid." JJ interrupted.

"No, listen." Reid sighed. "Her relationship with David was falling apart and the only way to keep him was to kidnap him and kill Harry MacLean in order to fake David's death. It makes-"

"Then how did I get Harry MacLean's body?" Reid whipped around, banging his knee on the table as he did so. Abby was standing in the doorway.

"That's what I have to figure out." Reid retorted.

"I'll have my team fax Harry's file over." Lilly told him.

X-0-X-0

He'd been up most of night looking over Harry's kidnap case. So far, he knew when, where, and several theories of how Harry had been kidnapped. He knew that the unsub was male. David had told him that, and also that the man had smelled strongly of alcohol. Reid suspected that, at the time of Harry's abduction, the unsub had been 40. He knew the unsub was Caucasian because David had said he'd caught a glimpse of the unsub's arm at one point during his captivity. Unfortunately, that was all David had seen of the unsub. David had said that the unsub mentioned having a daughter, so he assumed that, since he was so wrapped up in Abby's guilt, that the daughter might actually be Abby. That would explain how Abby had gotten Harry's body, if she had, in fact, kidnapped David and killed Harry and the other victims.

But if Abby wasn't the killer, Reid had no idea where he was going to look next. If David could get another letter out, maybe they could get another lead. But Reid highly doubted David would be able to send another letter. Sending the first one had been risky and he probably couldn't risk sending another. And if he faced death in sending another letter, Reid really hoped that his friend would just wait until the police came and got him out. But David had always been one for taking risks.

The ringing phone suddenly jarred him out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, agent Reid." He answered.

"Okay, so I raked up a nice, big list of little girls between the ages of five to twelve. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until I saw Timothy Lachlan was named as the father of a Stella Andrews. However, that can't be possible because Stella Andrews is only five years old." Garcia told him. "So, I did a little digging and I found out that Stella has a seven year old brother, and Timothy Lachlan was also named as his father. That can't be possible because-"

"Because Lachlan's been dead for thirteen years." Reid finished. "Who's their mother?"

"Officer Abigail Andrews." Garcia replied. Reid sighed and shook his head.

"That just goes to prove my point that Abby is somehow involved in this." He said. "What else did you find?"

"Nothing much. I did look over David's kidnap case from '84 and I found something that might be a lead." Garcia told him. Reid swore his heart skipped a beat.

"What is it?" He inquired.

"Apparently, the unsub that kidnapped David gave David a letter and told him to give it to the local PD. As far as I know, it's still in evidence." Garcia replied.

"Great. Thanks Garcia."

X-0-X-0

"You look exhausted." Emily commented. Reid smiled tiredly.

"You don't look so good yourself." He replied good-naturedly. Emily shrugged.

"Did you find anything last night?" She asked.

"I found out that Abby has two children, Stella being one of them. The children's father is Timothy Lachlan; however that can't be possible because both children are under the ages of eight. Lachlan's been dead thirteen years." Reid told her. He took a letter off the table and handed it to her. "David gave this to the local PD back in '84, after the unsub let him go." Emily unfolded the letter. It was written in a messy scrawl that was hard to read.

"_Local PD,_

_I hope you realize why I have done this. I needed to find a suitable boy for my daughter. David just didn't fit the bill, but, since he saw nothing, I did not kill him. Harry will suit my little girl much better than David. Don't worry about Harry. I will treat him well._

_Your elusive kidnapper_" She read. Emily looked up at Reid. "You think Abby's father kidnapped David."

"Of course I do. And there's one way I can prove it." Reid replied. "I need a sample of Mr. Andrews' handwriting."

"How are you going to get it?" Emily sighed. "Go up to him and ask him for his autograph?"

"No." Reid replied. "I'm going to explain my theory to Abby and ask her to get a sample of her father's handwriting so that we can move on to another suspect if we have to."

X-0-X-0

"And all of this is based on what, exactly?"

"Several things. One: you named Timothy Lachlan as your children's father, which is impossible, two: The unsub had to find a way to get MacLean's body, three: back in '84, David was given a letter when his kidnapper released him, and four: I think I recognize the handwriting. If you know for certain it wasn't your father, let me see a sample of his handwriting." Abby clenched and unclenched her fists for a few moments before nodding.

"Fine." She retorted. "I'll get it tonight and give it to you tomorrow."

"Right yourself a note." Reid told her. "If you don't bring it, I'll be even more suspicious." Abby glared at him as he walked out of the precinct.

Reid ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He really hoped he was right about this. If he wasn't, he didn't know where else to look. So far, Abby seemed to be the best bet, the best fit into the equation. But he was jumping to conclusions, much like David used to...

_*August 28th, 1992*_

_"David, just take it easy."_

_"They're conspiring."_

_"Against who?"_

_"Us." Spencer Reid sighed in exasperation._

_"You don't know that." He said. David slowly raised his head and look through the window. The two boys were currently outside, underneath a window. David was trying to see what the jocks were doing in the room on the other side of the window. _

_"It doesn't look like much. They could be doing homework for all I know." David whispered._

_"They probably are." Spencer sighed. _

_"No." David whispered as he sat down again. "No, they're planning something. Something... big. Something Death Star size." Spencer snorted._

_"Been watching Star Wars lately?" He teased. David smiled. _

_"So what if I have?" He whispered good-naturedly. He looked through the window._

_And then he grabbed Spencer and pulled him away from the building._

_"Now, if they come after us, they're definitely planning something!" He shouted over his shoulder. _

_*End Flashback*_

Reid smiled. As it turned out, the very next day the jocks tied him to a football post and left him there. David had left school early for a doctor's appointment that day. He remembered that David had nearly kicked the jocks asses to kingdom come when he heard about it. It hadn't been pretty.

X-0-X-0

"We have to get him out of the way."

"I'll think of something, kiddo. Don't worry." The man sat down with a grunt and ran a hand through his gray streaked hair. "Just keep cool. The woman bit her lip and cast a glance at the basement door.

"Reid cannot find him." She whispered. "I need him."

"No one is going to take him away from you." The man assured her. I guarantee it." The woman looked sharply at her father.

"If you hadn't kidnapped them or forgotten the fact that Reid was bound to notice that David's autopsy report didn't add up, we wouldn't have to fix this up. Reid is going to figure it all out. He already has." She retorted.

"Abby, I will take care of it." He sighed.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

It was the soft scratching sound that woke Reid. At first, he wasn't entirely sure he'd heard anything at all. But when the scratching started up again, he sat up.

"Who's there?" He called. There was no reply. "Hello?" Maybe he hadn't heard anything at all? Reid fumbled around in the dark for a moment or two before managing to turn the lamp on. The young profiler waited a moment or two, listening hard for the scratching. He waited for about a minute before sighing heavily, turning the lamp off, and lying back down.

Reid had just fallen asleep when the scratching came back. It was louder this time. He grabbed his gun off the nightstand before going to investigate.

"Oh, alright!" He called as he reached the door. The scratching suddenly stopped and he swore he heard footsteps hurrying away. Frowning, Reid opened the door.

No one was there. Reid stepped into the hallway and looked around. The hall was empty. Perhaps he'd simply been hearing things. Reid looked to the right again, whipping around when he felt a light draft brush up against his left arm. He grimaced when he smacked his hand on the doorframe. The young agent looked around one last time before stepping back inside the room and closing the door behind him. Now fully convinced he was simply imagining things, Reid went back to bed.

He never anticipated the blow to the back of his skull.

X-0-X-0

Hotch looked up when Emily entered the room.

"Have you seen Reid?" He asked. Emily frowned.

"He isn't here?" She said. "I would have thought he'd be here before Abby so he could get that handwriting sample the second she got here."

"Abby isn't here, either." Rossi told her.

"Agent Reid still isn't here?" Lilly inquired as she entered the room.

"I called him five times." Morgan sighed. "He's not answering his phone."

"He's probably sleeping in." JJ responded. "Don't worry. He'll be here."

The young woman had no way of knowing just how wrong she really was.

X-0-X-0

Reid groaned as he opened his eyes. He blinked a few times as the room slowly began to swim back into focus. Reid sat up and put a hand to his throbbing head. What happened?

"You're awake." Reid looked over his shoulder in alarm. A man in his early thirties was sitting against the wall behind him. His blonde hair was dirty and unkempt. Livid bruises marred his visible, pale skin and his clothing was in desperate need of a wash. There was also the faintest hint of a beard growing in.

"Who are you?" Reid asked. The man laughed hoarsely.

"I guess I really do look eighteen years older. You look like you've aged, oh, let's say ten years. You're easily recognizable, Spence." He replied in a cracked voice. Reid's eyes widened and his mouth fell open.

"David?" He breathed. David smiled. The smile didn't reach his eyes.

"Welcome to hell." The older said. Reid stood, almost not willing to believe it. He took a few steps forward and knelt in front of David.

"Really? It's really you?" He whispered. David raised an eyebrow.

"I can hardly be Darth Vader, now, can I?" He replied dryly. Reid grinned and threw his arms around David. The two friends hugged each other tightly and Reid began to sob.

"No, Spence. You know I'm-" David began in an uncomfortable tone.

"Shut up, clod head." Reid muttered. David would have burst out laughing at the lame attempt at an insult, but Reid was crushing his recently healed ribs. As soon as Reid had calmed down a bit, they broke apart.

"You got yourself caught, didn't you?" David sighed. Reid frowned.

"Not on purpose." He replied defensively.

"Abby didn't have her father bring you here just because she felt like it, Spence." Reid's eyes widened in alarm. He had been right. "Did she find out about the... you know what? Are you close to solving this thing?"

"Close enough that she felt like having me brought here, I guess." Reid told his friend. "I asked for a sample of her father's handwriting-"

"You solved it." David interrupted. "Spencer you figured it out. Once your team realizes what you figured out, they'll be here in no time." Reid was shaking his head.

"No, they think I'm jumping to conclusions." He sighed. "But we found a lot of stuff on Abby, not to mention the letter that your kidnapper gave you back in '84."

"I forgot about that letter." David commented. "Must have read it a thousand times."

"That's why I need that sample, to prove that her father wrote that letter." Reid replied.

"No, we just have to break out of here, then you won't have to prove anything." David sighed. Reid gave David "the look." "Okay, fine. Yes my last escape attempt failed, but you probably already had that figured out. She had me locked back up in this hell by the time the cops came, but I'm sure you read the report on all that drama."

"David, can I ask you something?" Reid whispered. David nodded. "Where'd you get all those bruises?" David's gaze hardened.

"Mr. Andrews." He replied. He cast a look at the door before continuing. "He's an abusive, drunk son of a bitch. I'm just glad he hasn't touched the kids."

"Stella and her brother." Reid stated. David smiled.

"So you got that one figured out, too." He commented happily.

"Are they yours?" Reid asked. David nodded.

"Erick and Stella, seven and five." He replied. "Best kids ever, really. I'm lucky to have them. Do you have any kids?" Reid snorted.

"You're kidding, right." He said.

"Well, why not?" David asked, confusion evident in his tone. "I know about Lila. Did anything come out of that?"

"What don't you know about me?" Reid said dryly. "And no, I haven't seen her in a month or two. It's just friendship, that's all. No kids. I don't think kids would be a good idea, though, with the 'Reid Effect' and all." David frowned.

"What's the 'Reid Effect', and who made it up?" He inquired. Reid was surprised when David's trademark 'don't mess with Spencer Reid' tone didn't make its way into the older boy's voice.

"My friend made it up. Basically dogs and small children don't really... like me." Reid replied. David raised an eyebrow before looking over at the door.

"Stella, is that you out there?" He called. "One of you is eavesdropping." The lock clicked and the door opened to reveal a little girl in a worn out nightgown. She bit her lip.

"Hi, daddy." She whispered.

"Are you eavesdropping?" David asked her. Stella twirled a long lock of honey blond hair around her finger.

"David, she's five years old. I doubt she knows what eavesdropping is." Reid said softly.

"As far as you know." David replied softly.

"Well, um... did you know that people smile only 35 percent as much as they think they do?" Stella asked her father. David smiled and Reid blinked in shock.

"Very interesting." David replied genuinely. "Now come here." Stella bolted over to her father and wrapped her arms around him.

"Grandpa passed out again, but momma's home." She said. Her voice was muffled due to the fact that her face was buried in David's shoulder. Reid ran a hand through his hair.

"Great." He sighed. "Think the team will put two and two together?" David pursed his lips as he thought about Reid's question. Someone would definitely go looking for Reid if he wasn't answering his phone. And when they saw that he wasn't at the hotel, they would know that something was off. That is, if not answering the phone didn't tip them off first.

"They'll certainly notice that something isn't right." The older whispered.

X-0-X-0

Morgan shook his head after leaving a tenth message on Reid's voicemail.

"He's still not answering." He sighed. Hotch frowned.

"It's twelve o' clock. I would have thought he'd be in by now." JJ commented.

"I'll go to the hotel and see if he's still there." Rossi said as he grabbed his jacket of the back of the chair. "I'll call you if I find him."

"Or something other than Reid." Emily piped up. Rossi nodded in agreement.

"That too." He replied.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

He'd been pacing for about thirty minutes now. Reid watched his friend in mild annoyance as he sat against the bed.

"Think of anything yet?" The younger man sighed.

"When I do, you'll be the first and only to know." David replied distractedly.

"Right." Reid responded. "Hey, do you remember that time when you and Jamie chased the jocks away with a couple of slingshots?" David stopped pacing and looked over at his young friend.

"And that's helpful how?" He asked slowly. Reid shrugged.

"I'm not trying to be helpful." The younger man replied cheerfully. David stared at his grinning friend for a few more seconds before resuming his pacing.

"I need statistics." David said suddenly.

"On what?" Reid inquired. The only time David asked for statistics was when he was completely out of ideas.

"Anything." David replied. "I don't care if they're about silkworms or China." Reid had to laugh at that. One look from David silenced him.

"Right. Let's see." Reid muttered. "83% of Americans will either be the victim of an attempted violent crime or a completed violent crime. Every 3.6 seconds someone dies of hunger. Stress and anxiety is estimated to affect over 19 million Americans. Oh, according to the Heimlich Institute the Heimlich Maneuver has saved more than 50,000 lives." David shook his head after a moment, and Reid took that to mean that David had no ideas.

"There's rarely a time when you have no idea of what to do." The agent sighed.

"I know." David muttered as he sat down next to his friend. "That just makes this even more frustrating."

"I get really scared when you don't know what to do." Reid confessed. David almost laughed, but he didn't want to hurt his friend's feelings if Reid was actually being serious.

"I've been out of successful ideas for eighteen years, Spence." The older sighed.

"Kind of like the Rebellion." Reid muttered. David's face lit up, as it always did whenever Star Wars was mentioned.

"It's really ironic, you know. I've been holed up in this house for eighteen years, it took nineteen years to complete the Death Star, Mr. Andrews is _just_ like Palpatine..."

As David continued ranting about the similarities between Star Wars and his situation, Reid couldn't help but think that it would take him _forever_ to get David to shut up. And then he had an idea.

"Stella said Abby was home, right?" He asked. David looked at his friend.

"Right." He replied. "Why?"

"Well, I was just thinking, maybe she could find a way to sneak Abby's gun. So long as Abby is home, she should be able to do it." Reid replied.

"Until she leaves for work." David said. "What if we can't come up with a plan by then?"

"We make one up." Reid responded. "That's the best part about being us. We make a great team." David shook his head.

"I don't doubt that." He sighed. "But we aren't surrounded by jocks this time."

"No, we're surrounded by a lovesick bitch and her drunken bastard of a father. It'll be easier to take them. Especially with a gun." Reid replied. "And I'm not as weak as I was eighteen years ago. I'll be more useful now. Just ask Stella or Erick to get the gun."

"Yes, it will be easier to take them with a gun. But Abby and her father aren't stupid. We have to think about it this time. I did not have my head on when it came to the jocks, Spence. When it came to the jocks, I was out of control. I admit it. This time we have to think it through before one of us gets killed." David told his friend.

"You're the doer, Davy. I'm the thinker. Ask them to get the gun and I'll do my job." Spencer whispered urgently. David thought for a moment before nodding.

"Deal." He replied softly. "But I'll get the gun."

X-0-X-0-X

"There's blood, but there's no Reid."

"No sign of a struggle?"

"None. There's no forced entry either. Now, I checked the parking lot and Reid's car is still there. Someone had to have taken him." Rossi couldn't see Hotch's face, but he knew it was lined with worry.

"We'll be there soon. Abby hasn't come in today, either. I'm beginning to think that Reid was right." Hotch said.

"Me too. Let's just hope we haven't realized that too late."

"Exactly." Hotch hung up and Rossi slipped his phone back into his pocket. It was, to put it lightly, a strange crime scene. There was blood on the floor, yet no sign of a struggle, so the attacker must have taken him by surprise. But why was Reid's gun on the floor, then? Had he heard something? Maybe he knew his attacker and they'd hit him when his back was turned? But why would he have had his gun drawn if he knew his attacker? Rossi sighed and ran his hand through his hair before dialing Hotch's number.

"Did you find something?"

"No, not yet. Do me a favor, drop by Officer Andrew's house and ask her if she saw Reid last night. I'm thinking she might have been the one that took Reid. He might have known his attacker. It looks like he was taken by surprise."

X-0-X-0-X

"Oh my God. Do you know when he was taken?" Hotch shook his head.

"Not yet." He replied.

"Did you see Reid last night?" Emily asked. Abby shook her head.

"No, just when I left the precinct." She replied. Hotch nodded. He opened his mouth to ask another question, but a small, soft voice beat him to it.

"Mama, who's he?" Abby, Emily, and Hotch looked up to see Stella Schroeder standing at the top of the stairs. She was still in her nightgown.

"Stell, why don't you go get dressed, okay. I'll have grandpa take you to the park in a bit." Abby suggested. Stella nodded and hurried to her room. The young woman turned back to Hotch. "I guess we should go. We have a friend to find." She stood and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm going to go get dressed."

Hotch stepped outside for a brief moment to call Garcia while he and Emily waited for Abby to get ready. It was during this time that the girl came downstairs.

"You're the FBI, right? Emily Prentiss?" She asked. Emily was taken aback. She knelt down in front of the child.

"How did you know that?" The agent inquired. Stella smiled.

"I looked Spencer Reid up for momma a few weeks ago and I saw a picture of Spencer and his team." She replied. "I got this handwriting sample. It's grandpa's. I heard momma talking last night, about how Spencer wanted grandpa's handwriting. But now that Spencer's missing, I thought she might forget. So here it is." Emily smiled as she took the paper.

"Thank you." She whispered. Stella smiled back and nodded before hurrying back upstairs.

After Abby, Emily, and Hotch left, Stella scurried downstairs to her father's basement prison to tell him that she and her grandpa were going to the park.

"Well, have fun." David told her. "Bring some grass back for me. Maybe a tree or two." Stella giggled and hugged him.

"I'll bring you back so much grass that you can put it on the floor and turn your room into a sort of yard." She replied. "But I'm not sure about the tree." Stella kissed him on the cheek before standing.

"Hey, leave the door unlocked, okay." Spencer said. Stella frowned.

"Grandpa won't be happy." She said. "If you guys leave, he'll hurt me." David smiled.

"Not if I break the door down." He replied. Reid's eyes widened.

"Break the door down?" He whispered incredulously.

"You think of something, Reid. But I can't pass up an opportunity like this." David replied. "I've been here too long. I have to get out of here. I have to get you, me, Stell, and Erick out of here."

X-0-X-0-X

Hotch looked around the room and sighed. They'd spoken to half the people on the floor in the last half hour, but no one had seen or heard anything strange. Except the woman in the room next to Reid's. She had said she'd heard him shouting at someone, asking who was there. But no one had answered. The woman assumed he'd answered the door because she had heard him tell the person at the door that he was coming, but after that she hadn't heard anything else. No voices, nothing.

"So, Abby's our best lead?" Hotch looked over at Emily.

"She is." He replied. "Let's go with Reid's idea and get a sample of her father's handwriting." Emily grinned and took a piece of paper out of her pocket.

"I already did." She replied. "Abby's daughter gave it to me." Hotch gave a rare smile.

"Well," He said "we better get that back to the precinct. Hopefully Reid is right about Abby and her father being involved."

Meanwhile, back at the Andrews' residence, David and Reid were straining their ears, listening hard for any sign that may indicate Mr. Andrews and Stella were still home. They'd heard them leave about two minutes ago, but they still wanted to be cautious. If they weren't, it could be disastrous.

"I still don't hear anything." Reid breathed. David nodded and stood.

"Here it goes." He said. David ran at the door and slammed into it. The door flew off its hinges and David landed on the floor with a yelp of pain.

"Shit." He muttered.

"Did you break something?" Reid asked fearfully. He knew that if David was seriously hurt he would know, but he still had to be sure.

"Damn ribs are still healing up." David gasped as he stood. He gingerly rubbed his ribs and took a deep breath. "Come on." Reid followed his friend upstairs. While David's "room" was cold, the rest of the basement was freezing. Reid shivered as they crept up the basement stairs.

"You get used to the cold after a while." David muttered before easing the basement door open and sticking his head out. He quickly looked around before looking back at Reid.

"All clear." He whispered. "The Andrews' are idiots. What the hell did they think we would do if they left us home alone?"

"Talk about the old days." Reid suggested. "Or talk about beating up the jocks." David quietly closed the basement door behind him.

"Well, whatever they expected us to do, they didn't expect us to kick the door down." He replied. Reid raised an eyebrow.

"I wouldn't call what you did to the door kicking." He remarked. "More like shoving." David shrugged. He walked into the kitchen and began to search for something to eat. "We really should get out of here, Davy. They could be back anytime, now."

"Well, knowing Stella, she's going to keep Andrews busy for a bit." David replied. "They'll be gone for a while, maybe an hour at the most." But Reid wasn't so sure. He glanced uneasily at the door for a moment.

"Hey, Davy, when does your son get home from school?" Reid asked suddenly.

"Three. Or something like that." David replied. "Why?"

"I'm only wondering." Reid responded. "Is the park relatively close?"

"Within walking distance. You and I used to play football over there all the time, remember?" David told Reid as he exited the kitchen, two cold pieces of pepperoni pizza in his hand. "Here, have some pizza."

"Would Stella and Andrews have walked to the park?" Reid asked.

"More than likely." David replied. "What are you getting at?" Reid turned to his friend and smiled.

"There's a pickup in the driveway. And since no one is here, it'll be easy as pie to drive out of here." He said.

"Yeah, if Andrews didn't take the keys with him everywhere he goes." David sighed. Reid's smile was immediately replaced with a frown. "And I'm not hotwiring that thing. I can't remember how."

"Great." Reid grumbled.

"We could just walk out the back door and out the gate." David suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Reid replied. "I think I'll take one of those." David handed Reid a piece of pizza before they went to the back door.

X-0-X-0-X

Emily hurried into the room. Her heart was beating fast and her breathing was quick and heavy.

"I got down here as fast as I could." She gasped.

'What happened?" Hotch asked fearfully.

"Mr. Andrews' handwriting matches the handwriting on the letter David Schroeder brought to the police in 84." Emily replied. "Reid was right. The Andrews are behind this."

"Let's go." Hotch said. "Morgan, JJ, you two stay here and make sure Abby doesn't leave."

Meanwhile, back at the Andrews' residence, David was trying to pick the lock. He was failing miserably.

"Hurry up." Reid hissed.

"I'm trying." David retorted. "Stupid lock."

"The lock isn't the problem." Reid sighed.

"Neither am I." David responded. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

"Just kick the door in." Reid suggested. Before David could respond, the front door opened and they heard Stella's voice. The look on David's face clearly said something along the lines of 'shit.'


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

"I thought you said an hour." Reid muttered. David shook his head, as if to say 'not now.' His mind was reeling. What the hell were they going to do? Reid stood slowly and crept over to the drawer where the knives were kept. Legolas watched Reid apprehensively, his eyes darting to the entrance to the kitchen every couple of seconds. Reid eased the drawer open and took out two knives. He looked up at David, who nodded.

"Wait, grandpa." David and Reid quickly looked over at the kitchen entrance. Mr. Andrews, who had been on his way into the kitchen, was facing Stella, his back to David and Reid. David immediately knew what Stella was doing. She was buying them time.

"What?" Mr. Andrews asked.

"What's the Golgi Apparatus?" Stella inquired. David looked over at Reid and gestured for him to hide. Reid nodded, indicating that he understood.

"You know what that is." Mr. Andrews replied. Stella shrugged. David crept over to Reid and out of Mr. Andrews's sight. Thankfully, the pantry door was ajar. The two men slipped inside and waited. They listened as Mr. Andrews told Stella what the Golgi Apparatus was and how it worked. Then they heard footsteps. Reid handed David a knife. The footsteps came closer to the pantry door.

"What do you want for lunch?" Mr. Andrews called. David tightened his grip on the knife. He looked over at Reid, who nodded. They knew exactly what they had to do. The pantry door opened. David and Reid lunged at Mr. Andrews.

Mr. Andrews jumped back just in time. Reid and David stumbled. Mr. Andrews punched Reid in the face, sending the agent crashing to the ground.

"Spencer!" David screamed. He would have lunged at Mr. Andrews again if the older man hadn't pulled out a gun and pointed it right at his chest. His eyes went wide as he let the knife clatter to the floor. Reid slowly got on all fours, blood dripping out of his nostrils.

"If you move again, Spencer Reid, I'll shoot your bodyguard. Without hesitation." Andrews growled. Reid froze. What were they going to do now?

X-0-X-0-X

Morgan looked up and frowned. He didn't see Abby anywhere.

"JJ, where'd Abby go?" He asked. JJ looked at Abby's empty desk.

"She was there a minute ago." She muttered before leaving the room. Morgan stood and went into the bullpen.

Hotch sighed and let his head fall back against his seat. They were in the middle of a traffic jam.

"Am I correct in assuming the sirens won't get us anywhere?" Emily sighed. Hotch took his phone out of his pocket and called Garcia.

"Shoot." The voice of their technical analyst answered.

"Garcia, I need you to see if there's a shorter route to Abigail Andrews'. We're in the middle of a traffic jam right now." Hotch sighed.

"Right away, sir. Just give me a second... yes, right past Riverside High School. Where are you now?" Garcia replied.

"About a block from Riverside." Hotch said exasperatedly. "Okay, call Morgan and have him take the shorter route to Abigail's. And tell him to bring some back up with him. Mr. Andrews is our unsub."

"Yes, sir." Garcia replied before hanging up.

JJ walked over to Morgan, whom was talking to Garcia and writing down directions.

"Alright. Okay, thanks Garcia. Bye." He hung up and looked over at JJ. "Did you find her?"

"Her car is gone." JJ sighed. "She must have taken off when we weren't looking."

"Great." Morgan sighed. "Okay, right now Hotch and the others are stuck in the middle of traffic, so he wants me to take the quicker route. You stay here and wait for Abby."

"Do you think she's going to come back?" JJ asked. Morgan shook his head.

"I don't think so." He replied. "But if she does, someone needs to keep tabs on her."

Meanwhile, back at the Andrews, Reid was staring in horror as his best friend was held at gunpoint. What to do? What to do?

"Let's just talk this out." David said slowly. "Talking helps."

"Shut up!" Andrews screamed. David and Reid jumped violently at the sudden outburst. "This is your fault, Schroeder! Kicking that damn door down was the worst mistake you ever made. Maybe even the last."

"You're wrong." David whispered. "The worse mistake I ever made was dating your daughter."

The gun went off.

Two screams echoed through the house.

X-0-X-0-X

Hotch slammed his hand on the horn for the fifth time in the past two minutes.

"Come on!" He shouted.

"Easy, Hotch." Emily said softly. "Shouting won't get us any closer to the Andrews." Hotch sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"We need to get their soon." He sighed.

"Don't worry." Rossi replied. "Morgan's on his way."

Back at the precinct, JJ still had not seen Abby. In truth, she was starting to worry. What if Abby wasn't holding Reid and David at her house, but a secondary location to which she was heading at this very moment? She quickly grabbed her phone and dialed Garcia's number.

"Did you catch him?" Garcia asked.

"Garcia, it's JJ. I need you to check and see if the Andrews have a storage locker or if they pay rent on anything. There might be a secondary location that she's keeping Reid and David at." JJ told Garcia.

"Got it. Just one second... nada." Garcia replied.

"Great. Thanks." JJ hung up and sighed in relief.

Reid stared in horror as David kept pressure on Stella's gunshot wound. David looked over his shoulder at Mr. Andrews, his eyes blazing with fury. Reid recognized the look. If David got the gun away from Andrews then Andrews was in serious trouble.

"You said you would shoot me!" David shouted.

"Death is too quick for you, kid." Andrews spat. "You'll suffer longer this way."

"Daddy." Stella moaned.

"I am going to kill you, you son of a bitch." David hissed. "And I'll do it slowly." Andrews actually laughed.

"And how do you plan on pulling that off, Schroeder? I have a gun pointed at you." He demanded. Reid slowly stood. David was smart enough not to look at him.

"People can dodge bullets." David spat.

"I would absolutely love to see you do that." Andrews retorted. Reid tackled Andrews to the ground. The gun clattered to the floor. Reid grabbed it and tossed it to David before scrambling over to Stella. He pressed his hands to Stella's wound as David advanced on his captor, gun in hand. Andrews got to his feet.

"It's over." David whispered.

"Not yet." Andrews retorted. "She's coming home, David. Abby."

"Not before I kill you, you son of bitch!" David screamed.

"David, calm down." Reid whispered.

"Shut up!" David snapped. Reid winced. Stella moaned and squeezed her eyes shut.

"David, this isn't helping Stella any. You need to call an ambulance-" Reid began.

"Shut up, damn it!" David screamed.

They heard the front door open. Footsteps came towards the kitchen. Seconds later, Abigail Andrews entered the kitchen. She yanked her gun out of its holster and pointed it at David.

"Put it down, sweetheart." She demanded.

"I don't think so." David retorted.

"Both of you put your guns down." Reid sighed. "And someone call the cops."

"I said shut up!" David screamed. Tears were beginning to roll down his cheeks.

"She's going to bleed out, David! Come to your senses! Think!" Reid shouted.

A gunshot rang out. A second one followed. The front door burst open.

"FBI!"


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Abby collapsed next to her father and began to sob. David curled up in a ball and groaned.

"Abigail Andrews, you're under arrest for the kidnapping of David Schroeder and Spencer Reid and for the murders of Harry MacLean, Jeffrey Slade, James Brown, Todd Jamieson, Cameron Grey, John Michaels, and Henry Johnson." Morgan said as he pulled Abby to her feet. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, the court can provide one for-"

"Just get her the frick out of here!" David screamed.

"Hang on, man." Reid whispered as Morgan finished telling Abby here rights. "My team's here. They're going to get you and Stella to a hospital."

"I wish I'd listened to you." David groaned as an officer took Abby away.

"Me too." Reid sighed. Morgan knelt down next to David and put pressure on David's stomach.

"Sp-Spence." David groaned.

"I'm right here." Reid replied. "Right here."

"This is FBI agent Derek Morgan. I need an ambulance at 9137 Orange Avenue. We've got two people with gunshot wounds..."

X-0-X-0-X

Reid let his head fall back against the car door as he waited for Emily to get back with Erick Schroeder. School had gotten out three minutes ago. He looked up and sighed with relief. Emily was back, and she had a young boy with her. He looked exactly like David.

"You're Spencer Reid?" Erick Schroeder asked when he reached Reid.

"Yes." Reid replied. Erick grinned and hugged Reid.

"You got daddy out." He whispered gratefully. "Thank you." Reid patted Erick on the back.

"Uh, you're welcome." He replied awkwardly. "We should get to the hospital."

David and Stella were both in surgery when they got back. Mr. Schroeder arrived a few minutes afterwards, having been in court since the morning. Stella got out of surgery at five-thirty, an hour before her father. Mr. Schroeder took Erick to see her before he took Erick home with him.

Reid was pacing when the nurse approached them.

"Are you all with David Schroeder?" She inquired.

"Yes." Reid replied quickly. "Is he okay?"

"It was touch and go for a while. We almost lost him twice, but he pulled through alright. He should be able to go home in a week. You can see him now if you like." The nurse told him. Reid nodded.

"Thank you." He replied. As the nurse led him to David's room, Reid called James.

"Bradford residence."

"Jamie, it's Spencer. We found him."

"David?"

"Yeah. He just got out of surgery. Abby shot him."

"I told him Abigail was a bitch. Why didn't he listen to me?"

"Hey, I told him, too."

"Yeah, you did, didn't you? I'll be down soon, alright. You at Mercy?"

"Yeah."

"See you in a bit."

"Alright. Bye." Reid hung up and thanked the nurse before entering David's room. He sat down in the chair next to his friend's bed and sighed.

"You really should have listened to me." He whispered. "Wake up soon, okay. Jamie's coming. He'll be here soon." David remained still and silent. Reid took David's hand and let his mind wander...

_August 22nd, 1990_

_The blonde teen looked over at the young boy sitting all by himself. He frowned. He'd seen the kid before. _

_"That's Spencer Reid." The boy next to him said. "He's a nice kid. I used to walk home with him last year."_

_"Why don't you walk with him anymore?" The blonde asked. The other boy shrugged._

_"I don't really know. He said some kids were giving him trouble and he didn't want me getting hurt." He replied. The blonde stood and dusted off his shorts. "Where are you going, David?" David gestured at Spencer._

_"He looks kind of lonely, don't you think?" David asked. He and his friend walked over to Spencer, who looked up in alarm when he saw them approaching. _

_"Hi." David greeted. "I'm David, this is James. Wanna' play football?"_

_"I… I don't know how." Reid replied hesitantly. He expected the boys to laugh at him, but instead they suggested another game._

_"Basketball? Kick-ball?" James asked. "Or capture the flag?" David smiled._

_"One question at a time, Jamie, jeez." He teased. James rolled his eyes. _

_"Well…" Spencer began. "I'm not really the athletic type." David shrugged and sat down next to Spencer._

_"That's alright." He said. "James isn't too athletic, either."_

_"Not my fault I'm a hillbilly." James said as he sat next to Spencer._

_"Just because you're from Tennessee doesn't mean you're a hillbilly." David replied in a mock southern-accent. Spencer smiled slightly. They seemed like good enough kids._

_"So, what do you like to do?" James asked Reid. Reid bit his lip._

_"Reading, right?" David inquired. "You kind of look like a bookworm. Which is fine, don't get me wrong." James jabbed a thumb at David._

_"He'd read more if they wrote Star Wars books." He commented. David grinned._

_"You bet I would." He replied. "Sorry, Spencer. We're not giving you much of a chance to answer our questions. What _do_ you like to do?"_

_"I do like to read. Chaucer is my favorite." Spencer replied. _

_"Hey, mine too." David replied. Spencer gave David a skeptical look. "No, really."_

_"I prefer Tolkien and Lewis." James piped up. _

_"Always with your head in the clouds." David teased. _

_"Right back at you Mr. I pretend to be Luke Skywalker in my spare time." James teased. All three of them laughed. _

_*End Flashback*_

"Spencer." Reid looked over at the door.

"He hasn't woken up yet." He told James.

"He will." James replied as he walked over to Reid. "Patience." Reid sighed and nodded. James sat down on the edge of David's bed. David let out a low moan.

"Hey, man." James whispered. "It's the Tolkien Geek." Reid smiled. "Look, I know I told Spence to be patient, but, wake up real soon, okay."

"Hypocrite." Both Reid and James nearly jumped out of their skin.

"Hey, buddy." James laughed as David opened his eyes. "You look very alive for a dead guy." David rolled his eyes.

"How's Stell?" David asked as he tried to sit up. James gently pushed him back down.

"She's fine." Reid replied. "She got out of surgery an hour before you. You dad came and got Erick." Reid told his friend.

"Dad was here?" David asked excitedly.

"He'll be back tomorrow." Reid assured David. "Now lie down and rest."

X-0-X-0-X

David looked up as Reid and Erick entered the room.

"Did you two have fun on your shopping spree?" David asked dryly.

"Yep." Erick replied enthusiastically. He handed his father a bag that said "Barnes & Noble" on it.

"What's this?" David asked as he took the book out of the bag. A grin quickly spread over his face when he saw what it was.

"And get this." Reid piped up. "It takes place right after Return of the Jedi."

"Sweet. Thanks you guys." David said. Erick gently hugged his father.

"I knew you'd like it." He whispered. The door slid open.

"Is there room for two more in here?"

"Dad!" David exclaimed. Reid quietly left the room as the Schroeder family reunited.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

The week flew by fast. Detective Rush went back to Philly and Abby's trial began the week after. It was over in a matter of days. She got three life sentences and the death penalty. David attended as the key witness, but he swore not to be in attendance when she was given a lethal injection. Stella, Erick, and David accompanied Reid to the airport when it was time for the BAU to leave.

"Call me as soon as you get home, okay." David told his friend.

"I will. I promise." Reid replied. David pulled his friend into a bear hug.

"Thank you." He whispered. "For not giving up."

"You never gave up on me, Davy. It was past time to return the favor." Reid replied. They broke apart and David sighed.

"When are you coming back down?" He asked.

"I really don't know." Reid sighed. Then, he grinned. "But I'll make sure you don't have to wait eighteen years." David snorted.

"I'll make sure of that, too." He replied. "Maybe I'll come down for Christmas."

"Do me a favor and spend Christmas with your dad, okay." Reid told his friend as Erick and Stella hugged him. David nodded.

"Fine. After Christmas, then." He replied. "I think Hotch is waiting." Reid looked over his shoulder.

"Yeah." He sighed. He hugged David again, hating the tears that were beginning to fill his eyes. "Good-bye." Erick and Stella released Reid.

"Thank you for saving us." Stella said. Reid knelt down in front of her and smiled.

"That was all you, kiddo." He replied kindly. "You sent the letter, and you gave agent Prentiss your grandpa's handwriting sample. You solved the case, Stella."

"Thanks, Mr. Spencer, but I just did what I was told." Stella said modestly.

X-0-X-0-X

"Yes, I got home just fine." Reid replied. "What're you worried about?"

"Hijacking." The voice on the other line replied. Reid laughed.

"Hijacking? Really?" He said good-naturedly.

"Yeah, really." David replied. "I thought maybe Timothy Lachlan's ghost hijacked the plane or something."

"That's pretty much impossible, GG." Reid laughed. "Ghosts pass through everything they come in contact with."

"Not Force-ghosts." David put in.

"The Force doesn't exist, Davy." Reid replied.

"No, but God does." David said.

"Of course he does." Reid replied. "He's the one who kept you alive."

"Right back at you, my friend."


	12. Epilogue: Eight Months Later

Epilogue

David lay back and sighed in contentment. He closed his eyes as he basked in the warm summer sun. Then, quite suddenly, something cold and wet jumped onto him.

"Hiya, daddy!" Stella exclaimed. David smiled at his daughter as he sat up. "Uncle Spence is helping Erick on the swing. See?" David looked over at the rope swing. Erick was holding on tight while Reid pushed him.

"When do I jump off?" Erick asked.

"As soon as you're ready." Reid replied as he gave Erick another push. "Just make sure you're not jumping into a shallow area." Erick nodded and as soon as he was far enough out, he jumped into the lake and landed with a loud splash. Stella cheered as Erick came back up to the surface.

"Nice job!" David and Reid said in unison.

"Now it's daddy's turn!" Erick called. David sighed, but stood up anyway.

"Need a push?" Reid asked as David approached.

"No thanks." David replied. "I'll manage."

_We are friends and I do like to pass the day with you in serious and inconsequential chatter. I wouldn't mind washing up beside you, dusting beside you, reading the back half of the paper while you read the front. We are friends and I would miss you, do miss you and think of you very often._

_ - Jeanette Winterson_

XXXX

**Thanks so much to all of those that reviewed! Your feedback was very much appreciated. **


End file.
